How to Prepare Print-Ready Artwork (Checklist Included)

Print Ready Artwork questions answered by the team that prints it every day. Platinum Digital Printing runs its own presses, embroidery machines and large-format printers in Randburg, Johannesburg — this guide shares what we tell our own clients, with no sales fog.

Resolution: 300dpi or Regret

Screens forgive 72dpi; print does not. Set documents to 300dpi at final size from the start — upscaling later invents pixels that print as blur.

Vector logos (AI, EPS, SVG, PDF) scale infinitely and always beat rasters for logos and text.

Bleed and Safe Zones

Add 3mm bleed on every edge — background extends past the trim line so cutting never leaves white slivers. Keep text and logos 5mm inside the trim (the safe zone).

Bleed is the #1 reason files bounce back. Set it up first, not last.

Colour: CMYK, Not RGB

Monitors mix light (RGB); presses mix ink (CMYK). Convert before export or accept colour shifts — neon RGB greens and blues have no CMYK equivalent.

Brand-critical colours? Supply Pantone references and we match as closely as process printing allows.

Export Settings That Work

Export PDF/X-1a or high-quality print PDF with fonts embedded and bleed included. Avoid supplying native Word or Canva screen exports for precision work.

Supply a print-ready PDF with 3mm bleed at 300dpi where possible. Not sure? Send what you have — our prepress team checks every file free and flags problems before they cost you money.

Print Ready Artwork — Frequently Asked Questions

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Further reading: prepress.